Hargreaves' success isn't a shock to the man who coached his final year of college.

"I'm not surprised at all," Florida Gators coach Jim McElwain said Thursday during a media session to promote the Jan. 2 Outback Bowl at Raymond James Stadium.

"How good he was and how much he loved the game and loved to play and loved to compete...Really, what he passed down to Quincy (Wilson) and Jalen (Tabor), I think that's a testament right there, as well, to how he kind of went about his business. There was no doubt in my mind when his name was called that he was going to be successful, wherever he was going to be."

TAMPA -- Former Texas head coach and Florida Gators assistant Charlie Strong seems to be the frontrunner to take over USF, but here's another name that surfaced when Willie Taggart left for Oregon.Gators defensive coordinator Geoff Collins.

"It should be," UF head coach Jim McElwain said. "He's a heck of a coach."

Collins wants to become a head coach, and he interviewed with UCF last year. The Gators will lose almost all of their defensive starters, so this would be a peak for Collins to head out on.

Those are all reasons why Collins might be interested in USF. But what would the Bulls - or another program - be getting in Collins as a head coach?

"They're going to get a guy that motivates players," McElwain said Thursday during a media session to promote the Jan. 2 Outback Bowl at Raymond James Stadium. "A guy that really understands the game and understands both sides of the ball, not just the defensive side. He's done a great job of studying the offensive side and the things that it takes there. A relentless, competitive recruiter, and a guy that's now been around at some places to see how he can establish his own kinds of ways of doing things." …

The Florida Gators do not plan to burn the redshirt for freshman quarterback Feleipe Franks in the Outback Bowl, coach Jim McElwain said Thursday.

McElwain said he expects Luke Del Rio to return from a shoulder injury that cost him the last four games. Either Del Rio or Austin Appleby would start against Iowa and the other would be available as a backup.

McElwain did not rule out pulling the redshirt off Franks or true freshman Kyle Trask after the SEC Championship Game. But McElwain said Thursday during an Outback Bowl media session that it would not be fair to throw either freshman quarterback into the bowl game, exhausting a year of eligibility.

Florida plays Iowa in the Jan. 2 Outback Bowl at Raymond James Stadium.

Florida State defensive end DeMarcus Walker has been named the ACC's co-defensive player of the year, as voted on by the league's coaches. FSU quarterback Deondre Francois was the rookie of the year, and running back Dalvin Cook received two votes as the overall player of the year (which Louisville's Lamar Jackson won).

I did the SEC yesterday, so the ACC is up today. As I wrote then, remember that if I were any good at predicting things, I'd be 1) winning my fantasy football league and 2) retired, on a beach, after making millions on one night in Vegas.

And no less of an authority than Alabama coach Nick Saban believes Kiffin is "absolutely" ready for another head coaching shot.

"He wants to be a head coach," Saban said last week in Atlanta after beating the Gators to win the SEC title. "I want him to be a head coach. I want to help him get a head coaching job." Kiffin has resurrected his career under Saban as the Crimson Tide's offensive coordinator. He has helped ‘Bama win three consecutive SEC championships with three different quarterbacks with three varying skill sets.

With Blake Sims at quarterback, Kiffin ditched the pro-style system for more no-huddle looks in 2014. ‘Bama finished 12-2 and went to the College Football Playoff.

The Florida Gators and their fans can celebrate how wrong I was in my preseason predictions. You're welcome?

As we battle the lull before college football's bowl season begins, I thought it'd be interesting to look back on my preseason predictions. How bad was I?

We'll do the SEC today and the ACC later. Keep in mind that if I were any good at predicting things, I'd be 1) winning my fantasy football league and 2) retired, on a beach, after making millions on one night in Vegas.

What I got right: Not much, aside from Vandy at six. That counts for something, right?

What I got wrong: I thought Tennessee's talent would finally come through with a championship. In fairness, the Vols did win the Championship of Life (no, I will never stop making this joke). But they failed to weather injuries the way UF did. I also thought Kirby Smart would get Georgia going faster than he has so far. He's doing it on the recruiting trail (his Bulldogs have the nation's No. 4 class for 2017), but it hasn't shown up on the field. …

The Alabama Crimson Tide celebrated its SEC Championship last weekend at the Georgia Dome. Vegas thinks 'Bama will be celebrating there again later this month as Peach Bowl champs.

If the odds makers are correct, Tampa's national title game will be Ohio State vs. Alabama.

That's according to some odds released last evening by Bovada.

The third-seeded Buckeyes are a three-point favorite over No. 2 Clemson in the Fiesta Bowl, while No. 1 ‘Bama is a 17-point favorite over Washington in the other semifinal, the Peach Bowl. I'm posting these for entertainment purposes only, of course.

Here are the overall odds from Bovada to win the College Football Playoff, which culminates with the Jan. 9 national championship at Raymond James Stadium:

Florida State running back Dalvin Cook is not a finalist for the Heisman Trophy.

Cook, a junior, was second among Power Five running backs with 1,620 rushing yards, 2,043 yards from scrimmage and 19 touchdowns.

The Miami native is one of three finalists for the Doak Walker Award, given to the nation's top running back. That will be announced Thursday.

Cook will likely end his FSU career in the Dec. 30 Orange Bowl; he's expected to declare early for the NFL draft. He has already broken FSU's career records with 4,319 rushing yards and 45 rushing touchdowns. Cook finished seventh in Heisman voting last season.

1. Washington might not be an easy matchup for ‘Bama after all. Not stylistically. I still think the way to beat the Crimson Tide is through some shifts and formations, like what Florida showed in the SEC Championship, plus a running quarterback. That doesn't sound like Washington. But the Huskies do have some other traits that might help end Alabama's 25-game winning streak. The Tide's defensive weakness is its secondary, and Washington can challenge that. Quarterback Jake Browning is No. 5 nationally in passer rating, and receivers John Ross and Dante Pettis are in the top 10 in touchdown catches. And you can't turn the ball over against ‘Bama and expect to win. The Huskies are plus-21 in turnover margin - No. 1 in the country. …

ATLANTA - NFL draft decisions will have to wait for a few Florida Gators.

A few players - cornerbacks Quincy Wilson and Jalen Tabor, defensive tackle Caleb Brantley and offensive tackle David Sharpe, to name four - could leave early for the NFL. All four said after Saturday's SEC Championship that they had not yet made up their minds and will do so in the coming weeks.

Wilson, Tabor and Brantley have all been projected as potential first-round picks in various mock drafts since the summer, for what that's worth.

"I think a lot has to go right, to be honest with you," Tebow said Friday afternoon. "I think they have to get a few turnovers. I don't think they can turn the ball over. I think they'll have to get a defense or a special teams touchdown and find a way to get, you know, 13 to 17 points offensively. I think that would be really hard, so I think it's going to be tough, but, shoot, that's why they play the game."

Tebow was in the Georgia Dome as an SEC Network analyst. If he were just down the hall in the UF locker room, here's what he said he would tell the Gators: Listen, all those guys, you played against the rest of these guys in high school, in U.S. Army All-American games, in Under Armour All-America Game, all that. You know who they are. They're not invincible. Guess what? When you hit them hard enough, they get knocked down too.

Tebow said UF would have to create the us-against-the-world mentality Urban Meyer did in 2006 to have a chance against 'Bama, a three-touchdown favorite.

The Florida Gators' locker room is ready at the Georgia Dome for Saturday's SEC Championship.

ATLANTA -- Fans looking for a scapegoat for the Florida Gators' offense won't find one in offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier.

At least not according to head coach Jim McElwain.

"He's done an outstanding job based on the hands we were dealt when we got here..." McElwain said Friday in his final news conference before Friday's SEC Championship.

I touched on some of those hands in today's Tampa Bay Times - the seven healthy offensive linemen he had on scholarship in the first spring practice, no holdover quarterbacks and only three offensive starters from that regime.

McElwain said Nussmeier has done a good job of figuring out those pieces and finding ways to win with them, even if the circumstances aren't ideal.

"Obviously there's things that need to be continually tweaked and looked at. You know what? The one thing I do know is our guys play their tails off, and that's great to see. It will be a constant evolution as we move forward as to how we go about it."

One of Nussmeier's former bosses, Alabama coach Nick Saban, praised Nussmeier, too said he didn't want him to leave for Michigan. …

About the blog

Florida Gators, Florida State Seminoles, Miami Hurricanes and UCF Knights fans, welcome to the Sunshine State blog for all your news about your favorite college teams. It's written by the staff of the Tampa Bay Times. We invite your comments and participation.